Synonyms of dresses

dresses 1 of 2

noun

plural of dress

1

as in gowns

a garment with a joined blouse and skirt usually worn by a woman or girl

what a lovely dress you're wearing today!

Synonyms & Similar Words

• gowns
• jumpers
• frocks
• kimonos
• sundresses
• shirtwaists
• housedresses
• minidresses
• shirtdresses
• sheaths
• chemises
• kirtles
• muumuus
• tea gowns
• overdresses
• granny dresses
• sacks
• Mother Hubbards
• coatdresses
• shifts
• sweaterdresses

2

as in costumes

clothing chosen as appropriate for a specific situation

a bagpiper in full Scottish Highlander dress

Synonyms & Similar Words

• costumes
• clothes
• outfits
• attires
• garbs
• togs
• getups
• guises
• styles
• habiliments
• apparels
• duds
• raiments
• drags
• vestments
• modes
• fashions
• arrays
• caparisons

3

as in looks

the outward form of someone or something especially as indicative of a quality

another version of the Cinderella story but in modern-romance dress

Synonyms & Similar Words

• looks
• attitudes
• figures
• manners
• appearances
• presences
• demeanors
• garbs
• aspects
• regards
• persons
• shapes
• miens
• postures
• outsides
• behaviors
• poses
• bearings
• carriages
• airs
• colors
• stances
• features
• molds
• deportments
• complexions
• poises
• comportments
• faces
• colorings
• habits
• casts
• turns
• countenances
• habitus
• physiognomies
• visages
• superficies

dresses

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of dress

1

as in bandages

to cover with a bandage

first wash and then dress the wound

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bandages
• heals
• binds
• treats
• ministers (to)
• swathes
• doctors
• nurses
• attends
• remedies
• cares (for)
• medicates
• cures
• rehabilitates
• mends

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unbandages

2

as in decorates

to make more attractive by adding something that is beautiful or becoming

let's dress up the room with some greenery for the holiday party

Synonyms & Similar Words

• decorates
• adorns
• drapes
• trims
• ornaments
• decks
• garnishes
• festoons
• bedecks
• graces
• embellishes
• arrays
• paints
• beautifies
• embosses
• bedizens
• enriches
• dolls up
• caparisons
• emblazes
• blazons
• gussies up
• does
• accessorizes
• embroiders
• pretties (up)
• fancifies
• traps
• glitzes (up)
• does up
• flounces
• ribbons
• tricks (out)
• garlands
• smartens
• feathers
• braids
• frills
• furbelows
• brightens
• dresses up
• jewels
• wreathes
• fancies up
• diamonds
• figures
• appliqués
• fillets
• freshens
• swags
• laces
• fringes
• chases
• bosses
• gems
• pearls
• gilds
• hangs
• spruces (up)
• filigrees
• redecorates
• redoes
• impearls

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• scars
• disfigures
• mars
• spoils
• displays
• defaces
• strips
• reveals
• simplifies
• streamlines
• blemishes
• exposes
• denudes
• uncovers
• bares
• dismantles
• divests
• uglifies

3

as in polishes

to make smooth or glossy usually by repeatedly applying surface pressure

dress the granite block to be used as the headstone on all four sides

Synonyms & Similar Words

• polishes
• rubs
• coats
• smooths
• scrubs
• glosses
• shines
• furbishes
• scrapes
• burnishes
• sands
• buffs
• grinds
• finishes
• glazes
• smoothens
• bobs
• faces
• files
• varnishes
• lacquers
• slicks
• bones
• veneers
• sleeks
• brightens
• scours
• sandblasts
• japans
• sandpapers
• rasps
• laps

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ruffles
• roughens
• roughs (up)
• scuffs (up)

4

as in clothes

to outfit with clothes and especially fine or special clothes

dressed the young girl in satin and lace

Synonyms & Similar Words

• clothes
• costumes
• attires
• gowns
• drapes
• garments
• wraps
• robes
• suits
• apparels
• garbs
• habits
• outfits
• decks (out)
• rigs (out)
• toilets
• jackets
• enrobes
• bedecks
• frocks
• arrays
• togs (up or out)
• caparisons
• vestures
• uniforms
• furnishes
• gets up
• dresses up
• cloaks
• mantles
• vests
• does up
• tailors
• invests
• swaddles
• equips
• huddles
• enswathes
• swathes
• dresses down
• habilitates
• underdresses
• haps
• bedights
• accoutres

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• strips
• undresses
• disrobes
• unclothes
• disarrays
• uncovers
• unveils
• untrusses
• denudes
• divests
• undrapes

5

as in suits

to put on one's best or formal clothes

we don't usually dress for dinner

Synonyms & Similar Words

• costumes
• clothes
• suits
• dresses up
• dolls up
• attires
• garments
• decks
• primps
• robes
• accessorizes
• preens
• apparels
• garbs
• prinks
• rigs (out)
• smartens (up)
• bedecks
• arrays
• togs (out or up)
• invests
• bedizens
• caparisons
• dudes (up)

6

as in grows

to look after or assist the growth of by labor and care

dress the beans by applying fertilizer once a week

Synonyms & Similar Words

• grows
• cultivates
• plants
• crops
• produces
• cultures
• tends
• promotes
• raises
• harvests
• rears
• breeds
• propagates
• roots
• sows
• gathers
• sprouts
• reaps
• ripens
• quickens
• gleans
• germinates

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• kills
• picks
• pulls (up)
• digs
• cuts
• plucks
• mows
• extirpates
• uproots
• hays

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of dresses

Noun

Jennifer Aniston’s signature style is built on timeless wardrobe staples like white tees, relaxed denim, maxi dresses, and sleek black gowns that always feel polished yet effortless. — Samantha Sutton, InStyle, 22 July 2026

Devotees of his fashions will likely disagree, seeing his pencil strokes bring to life elegant dresses and coats with flame-like lapels, or depict a crane and a contorting human with the same energetic strokes. — Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 21 July 2026

Meanwhile, other members of the family opted for military uniforms, suits or midi-length dresses paired with hats or headbands. — Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE, 21 July 2026

When shopping for petite skirts, dresses, or bottoms, look for ones designed with adjusted proportions—not just shorter hems or inseams—so everything hits where it’s supposed to. — Malia Griggs, Glamour, 21 July 2026

Indeed, there is much to be said for wearing nothing but dresses in the summer months. — Olivia Allen, Vogue, 21 July 2026

From everyday dresses and linen shorts to tank tops and tees, Old Navy’s sale section is your one-stop shop for summer essentials. — Meaghan Kenny, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 July 2026

Lerman says dresses are the easiest clothing item to pack, especially ones that are versatile enough to wear with sandals or sneakers for a variety of outings. — Kaitlin Gates, Travel + Leisure, 11 July 2026

Capris offer more coverage than shorts, while feeling cooler and easier to move in than fabric-heavy maxi skirts and dresses. — Kate Donovan, Southern Living, 11 July 2026

Verb

Regardless, men behaving in a repulsed or shocked way when a man dresses feminine or in women’s clothing is homophobic. — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 22 July 2026

Case in point, the Organic Cotton Relaxed Oxford Shirt, which stylist Nicole Chavez, who dresses Witherspoon, handpicked in her cool-girl summer capsule. — Olivia Cigliano, InStyle, 20 July 2026

Will’s obsessive, put-upon mother, Susan (Tandi Wright), belittles Alice, dresses her down for her attire at the funeral, and forces her to wear heels that don’t fit, leaving her feet bloody. — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 10 July 2026

Dior dresses the players for every official appearance—not as a sponsorship decoration but as a statement of aesthetic register. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 28 June 2026

While both draw big crowds and, like the pope, Bad Bunny often dresses in white, their messages are contrasting. — Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 10 June 2026

The most famous Colombian fan is Gustavo Llanos, known as El Cole (Birdman), who dresses like a tri-colored bird and has been to every World Cup Colombia participated in since 1990. — Michelle Kaufman may 29, Miami Herald, 29 May 2026

Shadbolt cleverly blitzes a bit of black walnut into a vinaigrette that dresses a spray of watercress on the side, adding an unexpected layer of harmony. — Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 17 May 2026

As if aware that things are about to get confusing for the audience, writer-director Ritchie throws plenty of narration at us early on, emanating from Rachel Wild (Eiza Gonzalez), the sort of ultra-confident lawyer who clearly dresses for success. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2026